Africa Overland - unfinished: Rising visa fees and bureaucratic issues additional to expensive flights, continuously worsening security situation for whites in the Sahel, and the cut-off through Angola and Congo (Democratic Republic) convinced us to visit other culture regions in future. The 6th stage on the Westroute will bring our Toyo back home. This continues the story of 16N 15W.

We couldn’t reach the Confluence before sunset. At darkness we felt our way up to the edge of Sebkhet el Khoui. „Further we should not go, it looks like rain.“ The salt lake belongs to the Parc National de Khenifiss which protects the vegetation and birds at the Moroccan Atlantic coast between Tan-Tan and Tarfaya. And really: At first morning light we could see thick grey clouds pile up over the close high plain. We just could escape out of the curtain of thick water drops back to the tar. Up to the plateau while it is raining could become dirty.

A surprise was waiting for us 8 kilometres further down the road at Akhfennir. A brand-new tar route brought us up on the 150 meters high plateau. Akhefennir is about 50 kilometres north of the demarcation line to Western Sahara. Beside subventions of fuel we could observe huge investments into local infrastructure and new settlements along the whole disputed province. Four years ago dusty places consisting of a rest house and a filling station now converted into shiny new settlements. Smaller cities offered brand-new promenades as wide as motorways and palm avenues. The for decades delayed referendum by Saharauis to decide about the phosphate-rich Western Sahara is contrasted by the kingdom by civil development and moving in new inhabitants.

Up the plateau the road turned south. Donkeys marked the turn off into Oued Rhaba. 215° SW – a ruler-like straight dirt road could already been spotted on Google Earth. After 5.5 kilometres we left the route carefully driving around euphorbia. 600 meters further the GPS zeroed exactly on one of the succulents.

Back at the station at Akhfennir we finally had the last subsidized fun: gasoil was still only 5.2 Dirhams (0.46 €/0.62 US-$).